License to Be Stupid
by marv
Summary: Lucas is acting older than his age


OK, Standard Disclaimer.I don't own SeaQuest or any of the characters involved in it.All my stories are amateur works.As always comments are welcome, criticism is OK too as long as it's constructive.Destructive criticism will be taken as an indication that you need something else to do with your free time :-)

This story takes place during the time the second SeaQuest is being built.

******

License to Be Stupid

By Marv (marvid@interaccess.com)

Rated: PG for swearing

"Sorry, Kristin, I can't come out to play.It's my day to do the laundry."

Kristin Westphalen shook her head ruefully, "Nathan, what do you mean it's your day to do laundry?"

Nathan kept wandering into and out of the picture on the vidscreen.Now he stopped in front of it.He had a laundry basket in his hands which was overflowing with clothes."Just that, it's my turn to do the laundry.We take turns doing the laundry and it's my turn."He put the basket down on his bed."You can come over here to play if you want to."

Now Kristin was smiling."Is that an attempt to get me to help with the laundry?"

"You've got to be kidding."Nathan frowned at the screen."What makes you think I'd trust you to do our laundry?"

Kristin was astonished, "You don't *trust* me to do your laundry."

"Hell no…you'd probably turn our underwear pink or something."

"So what am I supposed to do while you do the laundry?Sit there and admire how well you can fold socks?"

Nathan picked up some more clothes from a chair and dropped them in the basket."Doing the laundry involves putting the laundry in the washing machine and then in the dryer.Then once it's done you have to fold the clothes.There's lots and lots of downtime while things are washing and drying….you could help me fill the downtime."

"Uh, huh.And where would Lucas be during this downtime."

"I'm not sure where he went this morning," Nathan sounded perplexed."He was up and out of here pretty early…..well, pretty early for him on a Saturday."He turned back towards the screen."And he certainly didn't get in very early last night.I thought that he'd sleep in some."

"Why, how late was he last night?"

"He stumbled in a little after 1:30."

"Oh, I thought his curfew on Fridays was 1."

"It is….we haven't had a chance to discuss that yet.He managed to get up before I did."

"Well, tell you what…if I'm going to help with filling up your downtime, you're going to need to keep your strength up."Nathan turned an amused glance to the vidscreen."How about if I stop on the way and pick up lunch for us."

"That would be nice."

"Do you feel like anything in particular?"

Nathan shook his head, "Nope, use your imagination."He picked up the laundry basket."Oh, except how about we take a pass on that jambalaya that you got from The Quarter?Last time we had that it talked back to me all day."

Kristin smiled and shook her head."No sense of adventure, that's your problem…alright I'll pick up something and be there in about 30 minutes."Nathan smiled and closed the connection.

*****

Kristin finished off the last of the fried chicken as she watched Nathan fold some clean laundry.It was kind of nice watching him doing something so domestic.She couldn't imagine what his crew would think if they could see him folding underwear.She wondered if he'd still hold that mystique of command in their eyes.Grinning to herself she took the dirty dishes to the kitchen and cleaned them up.

When she returned to the living room Nathan was sorting through some dirty clothes.From the size and style of the items it was apparent that this pile of laundry was Lucas'.

Kristin was curious, "So why does Lucas have so many more dirty clothes than you do?"

Nathan glanced at her quickly as he checked pockets for anything left in them and sorted the items into separate piles."Because it's my turn to do laundry."

"Mmmmm hmmmm…I don't follow that."

"It's really very simple.When it's my turn to do the laundry, Lucas finds every piece of even vaguely dirty clothes to add to the pile…and when it's Lucas' turn, I find every little piece that I can."

Kristin leaned her chin on one hand and just looked at him.

Nathan got defensive."It does make sense….when it's Lucas' turn to do the laundry he saves up as much of his clothes as he can so that I have to wash them when it's my turn…and I do the same thing to him."

Kristin nodded a perplexed look still clouding her face, "So when it's your turn to do the laundry you cut down on how much you have to do by saving your dirty laundry for when Lucas has to do the laundry."

"You've got it."

"You two are weird."

Nathan grinned, "Guys just do things different than girls."

"I'm glad you noticed," Kristin said in a sultry voice.

Nathan glanced over at her, sitting on the couch with her feet drawn up under her and leaning towards him provocatively."Let me get this load in and we'll do a little exploration of the differences if you like."

"Mmmmm…I love research."

Nathan had pulled something out of the pocket of one of Lucas' shirts.He started to respond to Kristin until he glanced at the item.It appeared to be some sort of identification, perhaps Lucas' driver's license.Nathan was frowning at it and studying it intently.

"What?" asked Kristin.

Nathan didn't say anything but instead handed the item to her.As she thought, it turned out to be Lucas' driver's license but something about it made her look closer."Nathan, this license says that Lucas is 21."

There was no humor in Nathan's face now."Yeah, so I saw."He tossed the shirt that had held the license over to Kristin.

Her forehead creased with a frown."And this shirt smells like beer."

"And that answers why he stumbled in last night."Kristin handed the items back to Nathan.He was getting that tight look he got when he was angry…and the back of his neck was almost crimson.

Sometimes Lucas' timing could really stink and it certainly did now.Footsteps could be heard rushing up the stairs and seconds later Lucas appeared in the doorway.He spotted Kristin sitting on the couch first.

"Hi, Doc.How're doin?"Without waiting for a response he turned to Nathan."How's that laundry comin, Captain?"He headed for the kitchen.

"It's been interesting," was Nathan's controlled response.

Lucas came out of the kitchen drinking a glass of juice."How can laundry be interesting?"

"It all depends upon what you find."

Lucas threw a questioning glance his way and Bridger held up the fake ID between two fingers of his hand.Lucas stared at the ID in Bridger's hand with a look of shock on his face. He reached for the ID but was left grabbing only air when Bridger pulled the ID back into his own hand. Lucas tried to compose himself as he looked up at Bridger's face but he was met with a stony mask that only increased his discomfort.

"I…I just got it last night….I haven't even used it yet," Lucas stuttered.

Bridger couldn't even look at the boy.He shifted his gaze to the floor in front of Lucas.Kristin could see the muscles in his jaw work as he clenched his teeth and saw that his breathing had speeded up.When he finally spoke the tension was evident in his voice.

"I heard you come in last night…bouncing off the wall," he said tightly.He raised his eyes to Lucas and the boy was surprised by the anger he saw in them.He was even more surprised by the anger in his voice."Don't *lie* to me!"He didn't shout…the forceful, barely controlled tone was even worse.

Lucas stood rooted to the spot he was standing on.Afraid to move, afraid to breath, afraid that he'd ruined the one good thing that had happened to him in his life.Bridger still held the ID, crushing it in his hand.He stood staring at the boy.It was obvious that he was barely controlling the anger that threatened to erupt from him. 

After a long while Bridger took a deep breath and, still staring at the boy, said tightly, "You need get out of here."

Lucas' eyes got wide and his mouth moved to speak but nothing came out.

Nathan looked away from the boy."Get out of my face for a while."He threw the shirt that had held the ID into the laundry basket angrily.

Lucas glanced over at Kristin who gave him an almost imperceptible nod."Yes, sir," he said softly and left the house.

Nathan was staring at the fireplace.His hand clenched and unclenched over the fake ID and he occasionally shook his head slightly.He appeared to have forgotten that Kristin was there. 

"Are you alright?" Kristin asked softly.

Nathan took a deep breath and brought his head up to look at her.He nodded a little, looking at her but not really looking at her."Yeah….sure," and he went back to staring at the fireplace.

Kristin got up off the couch and moved closer to him."Do you want me to stay around or would you rather that I leave?"

His voice was far away when he spoke.He was calm but there was a tremendous tension just below the surface."If you don't mind, could you leave?I think it would be better if no one was around me right now."

Kristin rubbed his shoulder which was like a rock from the tenseness of his muscles and gave him a short kiss on the cheek."I'll call later on if that's alright."Nathan nodded.As Kristin left she looked back and saw that he had absently picked up the juice glass that Lucas had put down and was staring at the crushed ID in his hand.Just before she reached the stairs Kristin heard a crash of glass as Nathan threw the juice glass against the fireplace.

As she stepped off the stairs Kristin spotted Lucas sitting on the far end of the dock of Nathan's house.The boy was sitting against a piling with his knees drawn up and his arms wrapped around his legs.She walked out to the end of the dock and squatted down next to the boy.Lucas had his face buried in his knees and never heard her approach.She could see the quaking of his shoulders as he cried.

"Are you alright, Lucas?" 

Lucas raised his tear-stained face to her.Doctor Westphalen was probably one of only two people in the world who he didn't mind if they saw him crying…and he'd just pissed off the other one so bad that he couldn't even stand to look at him.Lucas just shook his head.

"How could I be so stupid?"

Kristin rubbed his shoulder, "Lucas…"

But he wasn't listening."I blew it…I finally get some who cares about me and I blew it."He put his face down against his knees again.His voice sounded muffled when he spoke again."He loves me more than my own parents do and I go and blow it with him."

Kristin tried to reassure him."Lucas, you haven't blown it with him."

Lucas looked over at her."You know why he told me to leave, don't you?….because he was angry enough with me to hit me but he didn't want to."He looked out at the water and shook his head again. "I can be so stupid sometimes."

"Lucas, you made a mistake.That's part of growing up….your one saving grace is that he *does* love you…and I think it would take an awful lot to completely blow it with him."

The boy's voice was almost heartbreaking, "He's never going to trust me again."

"Well, you've put a pretty good dent in his trust of you…but that doesn't mean that you can't build it up again."

"Yeah, if he doesn't just call my dad and send me back to him."

Kristin decided on some levity, "Oh, he couldn't do that…it'd take him a week to get ahold of your dad to begin with."She at least got a little smile out of Lucas with that."I'm not saying that you're going to have an easy time of this, Lucas…and to be honest you don't deserve an easy time."Lucas nodded slightly."You can't change what you did…so get over that part of it….and work it out with him."

"If he ever talks to me again," Lucas said in a forlorn tone.

Kristin's voice was positive."Oh, he'll talk to you….you may wish that he hadn't by the time he gets done."Lucas grimaced at that."Can I give you one suggestion, Lucas?" she asked earnestly.

Lucas looked up at her, "Yeah?"

"You got caught with your hand in the till.For God's sake, don't lie to him again.He'll keep on talking as long as you're honest with him….just give him a little time."She rubbed Lucas' shoulders again as she stood up."And if you need to talk, you've got my number, right?"Lucas nodded again and returned his head to rest on his knees.

Almost an hour later Lucas heard someone stop on the dock next to him.He looked up at Bridger who asked, "You busy?"

Lucas scrambled to his feet, wiping his face.Bridger was looking out at the water and not at him."No, sir," was Lucas' soft response.

Nathan cast a quick glance at Lucas and indicated the direction of the house with his head."C'mon."He led the boy around to where his car was parked.

Lucas went over to the passenger door."Where are we going?"

Nathan looked at the boy over the car as he unlocked the doors.Bridger's face was an unreadable mask."On a field trip….get in."

Lucas got into the car and Bridger pulled out.They had driven almost 15 minutes in silence before Lucas got the nerve to ask the question again."Can I ask where we're going?" he asked quietly.

Bridger never took his eyes off the road."We're going to visit a friend of mine."He took a deep breath and let it out."I should have gone to see him earlier.We've been here what?…four months?"He shook his head."I should have seen him earlier," he said quietly and just kept on driving.

Not too much more time passed before they pulled off the highway into a residential area and then onto a tree-lined street of pleasant, well-kept ranch houses.Bridger stopped at a stop sign and sat for a minute before continuing down the block.He pulled up in front of a white stucco ranch house with a front yard that had an agreeable, lived-in look.There was a man of about 30 puttering around a small garden in the front of the house.The man glanced up, frowning, as the car pulled to the curb.His face changed immediately when he spotted Bridger getting out of the car.Lucas didn't think that he'd ever seen such a look of pure joy that flooded the man's face.

"Captain!" he shouted and headed for the car.

Bridger stepped around the car onto the lawn and was almost bowled over by the bear-hug the man put on him.The man burrowed his head into Bridger's shoulder as Nathan ruffled his hair."Hey, Danny-boy, how're doin?"

As the man pulled back to look at Bridger, Lucas noticed his angelic, almost child-like expression.Lucas realized that was a pretty good description of it.Just looking at him it wasn't apparent that he was impaired but when he started talking the impairment was obvious.This wasn't a man of 30…this guy was a child of 30.He wasn't a tall person, probably only about 5'7" and looked to be in relatively good shape.An ugly scar marred the left side of his face and he seemed to have some trouble walking.

"I..I'm doing good, sir," he said in a halting voice, the smile still splitting his face.

"Have you been behaving yourself?" Bridger asked in a mock serious tone.

Danny just laughed, this was obviously an old joke."Yes, sir…whenever I can."

Bridger smiled and looked over to Lucas."Danny, I'd like you to meet a friend of mine, Lucas."

Danny carefully wiped his hand off on his pants before extending it for a handshake."Hello, Lucas."His words were a little drawn out.

"Hello, Danny," Lucas had to smile in spite of his mood.

Bridger put his arm around Danny's shoulder."So…what are you working on today?"

Danny eagerly led them over to where he had been working."Just the flowers.I'm pulling out the weeds."He looked up at Bridger with an innocent face. "Did you know the weeds grow better than the flowers do?"

Bridger smiled, "Until you pull them out, Danny."

The door to the house opened and an older man came through. His face brightened when he saw Nathan."I was wondering what all the ruckus was out here…Hello, Nathan."He put his hand out.

Bridger grabbed it in a warm handshake."Hi, Mike….I'd like you to meet Lucas….Lucas, Mike is Danny's father."He looked at Mike again, "We thought we'd come out for a visit."

Lucas exchanged handshakes with the man.

"Well, we're awful glad you made it out this way.Danny always likes seeing you, Nathan."

"He's been showing us his garden.It looks pretty good."

Mike smiled and patted Danny on the back."Yup, Danny's pretty good with the growing things…and since he broke his computer he's stuck working outside instead."

Nathan was curious, "Broke his computer?…How?"

Mike just shook his head and Danny looked sad."He's got it all hosed up, Nathan.Settings all wrong and I'm not sure what else."

Nathan hazarded a glance at Lucas who picked up the cue right away. 

"Hey, Danny," Lucas said to the man, "I'm pretty good with computers. How about if I take a look at it."Danny's face lit up with joy."No promises," said Lucas, "but I can give it a try."

Danny grabbed Lucas' hand to lead him inside."I'll show you where it's at."

Mike smiled as he saw his son's eagerness and turned to Nathan, "That'll give us time to sit down over a cup of coffee and talk."He led Nathan inside to the kitchen where they sat and talked for the better part of an hour.

Then they walked back to the den where Lucas was working on Danny's computer.As they entered the den Danny was sitting in front of the computer and Lucas was in a chair next to him.Danny was surfing away on the Internex.

"Dad!Lucas fixed it!"

Mike shook his head and looked at Lucas with wonder."You're a miracle worker, Lucas.What was wrong with it?"

Lucas got an embarrassed smile, "Hosed was a pretty good description of it.The settings were all off, a couple of the boards had come loose and someone…" He tweaked Danny in the side to the sound of Danny's laughter, "had messed with the sign-on settings….it took a little bit but I think it's all straight now."

Danny had obviously missed spending his time on the computer and now gleefully spent over an hour showing Bridger and Lucas the various things he'd done with the computer and places he'd found on the Internex.

Mike looked at his watch, "You're going to have to shut it down now, Danny, if we're going to meet your mother for dinner."

Reluctantly, Danny signed off the computer and, with his father, escorted Lucas and Nathan to the door.

Mike shook Nathan's hand again."Ann will be sorry that she missed you."

"I'll try to stop by sometime when she's here," said Nathan.

Lucas and Nathan both endured Danny's bear-hug this time.After he hugged Nathan he pulled back and looked at him."You will come back to see us again, won't you, Captain?"

"Absolutely, Danny boy," he ruffled Danny's hair and pointed his thumb at Lucas."I might even bring this guy back with me."

"That would be nice, sir," smiled Danny."I like Lucas."

Bridger and Lucas got into the car and started driving home.The silence that had been present on their way to Danny's house reappeared as Bridger refused to start a conversation.Finally, Lucas had to ask.

His voice held a little trepidation when he asked, "Are you going to tell me about Danny, sir?"

Bridger glanced over at the boy."Sure, let's get out of the car though."He pulled into a beach parking area and they both got out of the car.They headed onto the beach, both removing their shoes and walked down the sandy shore in silence until Bridger was ready to talk.

Nathan stopped and stood looking out at the waves gently pounding the beach and sighed."Ten years ago that was Dan McKenny, Sonar Tech, Submarine, Third Class….he was one of the best sonar techs I ever worked with."He glanced quickly at Lucas and looked back at the water."He was one of the best people I ever worked with too."Nathan started walking down the beach again."He was one of those guys that you looked forward to being on shift with…not only did you know that you had a damned good sonar tech sitting the position….one who wasn't about to let anyone sneak up your baffles…but also his attitude affected the entire boat….He was cheerful….he worked hard and he inspired others around him to work hard…and he was just…fun."

Bridger walked on a little more in silence.Lucas could see that he was lost in some memories.He finally started up again.

"We were in port for some repairs.Some idiot had been playing games with a Russian sub and managed to damage the rudder by surfacing right into the other sub…It didn't dry-dock us but we were stuck in port for the better part of two weeks while they fixed us up.Guys aren't used to getting two weeks ashore right in the middle of a rotation.Sometimes they get stupid."Bridger walked a little way more, staring at the sand in front of him.

"One night, Dan McKenny, Gus Palansky, and Ricky Warrick decided to hit the town.All of them were pretty smart kids, they were either 19 or 20.Palansky was a Torpedo Mate Second Class and Warrick was a Quartermaster Third Class.I never, ever had a problem with any of them before."

Bridger stopped and kicked at some shells that had been brought in by the tide.His voice was a little strained when he continued. "I got a call at 2 a.m. from the Norfolk police….some of my sailors had been in an accident and could I come down to the hospital?"He paused again."They'd gone out and found a bar that would serve them beers."He shook his head. "They didn't have much to drink.Maybe three beers apiece but it still affected them."Bridger looked out at the water again…it seemed to give him comfort."On their way home a car coming from the other direction made a left hand turn that it shouldn't have…we figure that normally, they would have been able to avoid the car but their reactions were dulled just enough that they plowed into it broadside."

"Danny was in the back seat and the car rolled.The roof came down on Danny's head and caused a whole set of injuries.He was trapped in the back of the car for about 15 minutes where the paramedics couldn't even reach him.When they did get to him, he wasn't breathing.They were able to get him breathing again but the lack of oxygen and other injuries, including a fractured skull, resulted in some pretty substantial brain damage.He also had a broken arm, four broken ribs, a broken collar bone and some internal injuries."Nathan sat on the top of the base for a long-gone pier."He was lucky to survive."

Lucas had sat down on the sand in front of Nathan.He watched as the Captain absently tossed rocks back into the surf."What happened to the other two guys?" he asked softly.

Nathan glanced back at Lucas for a moment."Like I said, Danny was lucky.Palansky was in the passenger seat and didn't have any restraints on…he went through the windshield when they hit."Bridger took another deep breath."They figured that he cut his jugular vein when he went through the glass.He bled to death on the ground."

Bridger was silent for a while, his glance far away."And Warrick?" Lucas prompted.

Nathan rubbed his eyes before continuing."Warrick was driving.Like I said, the car rolled and the roof collapsed in.It rolled the worst on the left side and the roof ended up where Warrick's head should have been."Bridger closed his eyes, surrendering to the memories."They asked me to identify the bodies."He paused."Palansky was no problem but I had to ID Warrick by his tattoos, there just wasn't anything left of his head."He opened his eyes again, "Then they used dental records, of course, to confirm but I'd already had my chance to see them."

"Wow, Danny was lucky to have survived," said Lucas sincerely.

Bridger rubbed his face with both hands."While you were back working on Danny's computer I was talking with Mike….Danny's having more seizures…they're increasing in frequency and severity…what's left of Danny's brain is shutting down….the accident is going to kill him….it's just going to do it ten years after it happened."

Lucas looked out at the waves coming onto the beach and Nathan noticed that he was blinking a lot like he was holding back tears.Nathan moved from the rocks to sit down on the sand next to Lucas.

Nathan looked at Lucas until he brought his eyes in from the water and returned his glance.When he spoke, his voice was surprisingly gentle."Sometimes we don't say things that we should be saying to people.I don't think I've told you how much I like having you around."Bridger paused and looked at the sand between them for a moment and then raised his eyes to Lucas' once again."Lucas, I love you and I don't want you to end up like Danny."

"I won't, sir," answered Lucas softly.

Bridger kept looking him in the face."If you'd asked Danny before the accident he probably would have told you the same thing…It won't happen…"Bridger's voice became more earnest."But Lucas it does happen.I brought you to meet Danny because I love you and I don't want you to have to live with the results of doing something stupid.Danny hardly had anything to drink and he wasn't driving but he's paid for that drink for the rest of his life.And it wasn't only Danny who suffered.His father and mother have had to postpone their retirements to make sure they have enough money and insurance to take care of Danny's needs.They're raising a son of 30 years of age when they ought to be enjoying being empty nesters who occasionally look forward to a visit from a grandchild."Bridger paused again."And then there's the rest of us.I would really liked to have known what Danny could have done with himself if the accident hadn't changed his life."A sad frown marred Bridger's face and he looked down again, "He was fun to work with…he had imagination but he had discipline.He could inspire other people and he never settled for just doing a good job…to Danny it always had to be a *great* job."Bridger shook his head, "He really could have been something."Nathan shrugged, "He still is, I guess…just in a different way."

They were both silent for a long time.Lucas spoke first and his emotions were evident in his voice."Are you going to send me away, sir?"

Bridger looked up at the boy.His voice was calm, "No, Lucas…..you're stuck with me."

Lucas sniffled, "Or you're stuck with me…."Lucas blinked back some tears, "I mean…well…you sent me out of the house because you were afraid you were going to hit me, right?"

"Yes."

"Why didn't you?"

Nathan reached over and put his hand on Lucas' shoulder."Two reasons…first…and understand that I believe that there is a place for corporal punishment when raising a kid…when a punishment is used in excess or for the wrong reasons, it loses its effectiveness.I could never hit you Lucas.On you the message would be wrong….Second, and most important, it wouldn't have solved anything.Just like your mother hitting you didn't get your father home any earlier and didn't make her feel any better, my hitting you wouldn't have kept you from drinking.All it might have done is to equate me with your mother.There would have been no point."

Lucas wiped at his face and occasionally glanced up at Nathan and then looked away until he had controlled his tears.Nathan shifted his glance out to the water where he silently watched the surf roll in.Finally, Lucas could trust himself to talk again.

"Does that mean that you're not angry with me anymore?"

Nathan cast a serious glance at the boy."No….I'm still angry at you….angry and disappointed….but that's just something we'll have to work through."

Lucas' voice was soft when he talked, "I'm sorry, sir.It was a stupid thing to do.I just thought…"

Bridger broke in, "You didn't think….you went out last night and you broke every rule in the book…and quite honestly, if I find out who it was that you were out with last night, you'll never go out with them again."

Lucas had thought that he'd gotten by the worst with Bridger and his words surprised him.

"It isn't only the drinking, Lucas, although that definitely was your high point."Bridger used his fingers to tick off Lucas' other offenses."You violated your curfew, you didn't tell me where you were going, either last night or this morning, you didn't tell me who you were going to be with, you lied to me about the drinking….need I go on?"

Lucas could only shake his head and wordlessly mouth "No".

Bridger took a breath, sat up straighter and then continued, "We did discuss the ground rules when we started this venture didn't we?"Lucas nodded."And you do understand them, right?"Lucas nodded again."Is there anything in them that's unclear to you?"This time Lucas shook his head.Bridger rubbed his eyes and with his hand still covering them said, "And yet you chose to violate almost every rule in the house right down to the fact that you didn't make your bed this morning."Bridger dropped his hand and looked up at the boy."I have to ask…..Why?"

It took Lucas a couple of tries before he was able to get his answer out but finally he softly said, "I don't know."

Nathan got a resigned look on his face, shut his eyes and shook his head."Someday…someday, Lucas, you're going to find out just how frustrating that answer can be for an adult."He stood and brushed the sand off of his pants.Lucas followed his lead.Bridger was still shaking his head a little as they started walking back to the car.

"What now?" asked Lucas with some trepidation.

"Now, you start a rebuilding project.I don't know how far I can trust you anymore."Lucas winced at this."You're going to have to do some work to earn my trust again."Nathan looked over at the boy's stricken face."But we'll get through this…all part of growing up I guess….Though I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't try to give me an ulcer while you're doing this growing up stuff."A relieved grin crossed Lucas' face.

"So, Lucas, are you hungry?"

The grin reappeared."Captain, I'm always hungry."

Bridger chuckled."Just you and me or should we call Kristin?"

Lucas got a serious look on his face."We should probably give Kristin a call.I think she was really worried about if we were going to be able to settle this."

"Okay, we'll call her…and then we'll get you a good meal…'cause it's going to be the last time you eat out in a while."Nathan looked over at Lucas' surprised face."You're grounded…we'll start out with two weeks and see if I calm down by that time."

Lucas started to argue but one look at Bridger's face and he thought better of it.His common sense kicked in and he just responded with a meek, "Yes, sir," as they walked up to the car.

The End.


End file.
